mirror of
https://expo.survex.com/repositories/expoweb/.git/
synced 2024-11-22 23:31:56 +00:00
415 lines
25 KiB
HTML
Executable File
415 lines
25 KiB
HTML
Executable File
<!DOCTYPE html>
|
||
<HTML>
|
||
<HEAD>
|
||
<META HTTP-EQUIV="CONTENT-TYPE" CONTENT="text/html; charset=utf-8">
|
||
<TITLE></TITLE>
|
||
<META NAME="GENERATOR" CONTENT="LibreOffice 3.4 (Unix)">
|
||
<META NAME="CREATED" CONTENT="0;0">
|
||
<META NAME="CHANGED" CONTENT="20120105;3443900">
|
||
<STYLE TYPE="text/css">
|
||
<!--
|
||
@page { size: 21.59cm 27.94cm; margin: 2.54cm }
|
||
P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm }
|
||
P.western { so-language: en-GB }
|
||
-->
|
||
</STYLE>
|
||
</HEAD>
|
||
<BODY LANG="en-GB" DIR="LTR">
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=CENTER STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2><U><B>Kaninchenhöhle,
|
||
Steinbrückenhöhle and Tunnockschacht: a brief history</B></U></FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Kaninchenhöhle was CUCC's
|
||
primary project throughout the 1990s, following its discovery in
|
||
1988, eventually reaching 22km length and 500m depth. In 1999
|
||
Steinbrückenhöhle was discovered a km or so to the North, and (not
|
||
least because it had a really nice bivi site), because the main
|
||
focus. Over the next decade, nearly 17km of passages were explored
|
||
there with a vertical range of over 600m. The cave has several
|
||
levels, lined up with the dip of the limestone plateau, separated
|
||
from one another by pitch series, and has potential to connect to
|
||
both Kaninchenhöhle ('KH') and Tunnockschacht, as it lies between
|
||
them, and by the end of 2010 quite close to both, although the KH
|
||
nearest approach point had been checked carefully and found hopeless
|
||
from both sides. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Tunnocks was first found in
|
||
2005 And over the next few years, provided over 7km of surveyed
|
||
passage with a vertical range of 256m. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>During the previous
|
||
expedition, CUCC had descended an impressive 80m pitch ‘String
|
||
Theory’, and had discovered a number of leads at the bottom, one of
|
||
which being a tantalising 20m away from Steinbrückenhöhle. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Hopes for a connection
|
||
between and Tunnocks were high, but we've thought connections were
|
||
'likely' before and been wrong...</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>2011 saw a relatively large
|
||
and strong team so the decision to work in all three major caves was
|
||
taken, with most of the Steinbrücken work being done from an
|
||
underground camp at -400m. The 1980s tradition of having UBSS members
|
||
along was revived this year, which worked well as they had some
|
||
actual students who were able to come, and supplied the first ever
|
||
expo-leader-not-based-in-Cambridge in the form of Chris Smith. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>The character of the 3
|
||
caves is quite different, which keeps things interesting for
|
||
expo-goers. Tunnocks has mostly steep bedding-controlled passages,
|
||
interupted by occaisional large shafts, with a large partly
|
||
snow-filled entrance shaft. Steinbrücken has a tediously tiny
|
||
entrance and a lot of annoying stoopy passage leading to the 300m
|
||
shaft series of Gaffered to The Walls, with extensive horizontal
|
||
soil-filled development at the bottom. KH is largely walking passage,
|
||
some of it enormous, with as much up as down on this year's route. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2><U><B>Steinbrückenhohle</B></U></FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>This year, members of CUCC
|
||
decided to return to one of the horizontal levels, Subsoil. The team
|
||
had two main goals: to continue pushing new passages into blank
|
||
space, and to search for the potential connection with
|
||
Tunnockschacht, whose closest point was only a few dozen tantalising
|
||
metres away from Steinbrückenhöhle.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>To cut down on the amount
|
||
of time spent 'commuting', Edvin Deadman, Niall Peters, Djuke
|
||
Veldhuis, Jess Stirrups and Kathryn Hopkins set up an underground
|
||
camp at about -400m. A few years previously, a large sandy-floored
|
||
chamber with a nearby water supply had been found. This made a
|
||
perfect campsite. After a couple of rigging and carrying trips at the
|
||
beginning of the expedition, the Butlins Holiday Camp was born! With
|
||
only three sleeping bags (and a tent inner, to keep off the draughts)
|
||
they would be caving in shifts and 'hot bedding', in two long trips
|
||
of three or four days at a time. The camping was organised with (very
|
||
unusual) military precision, including laminated time-charts of when
|
||
each shift was caving or in bed, and none of the cavers involved had
|
||
camped underground before. Overall it was deemed a great success in
|
||
enabling a lot of work in the deeper reaches, but the hot-bedding
|
||
proved somewhat miserable for the night shift.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Much of the camper’s time
|
||
was spent in a race against the Tunnockschacht team to find the
|
||
elusive connection between the two caves. They were convinced that a
|
||
strongly draughting pitch series that they found, called 'Bird on a
|
||
Wire', would lead them to glory. However, after running out of both
|
||
time and rope, with the pitches still going, it was decided to turn
|
||
their attention to other more horizontal leads. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>The other main find was
|
||
very close to the campsite, where a sketchy climb up the side of a
|
||
chamber led to several hundred metres of large phreatic development:
|
||
'A Grand Day Out', which is heading into blank space.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>After two successful
|
||
camping trips, about 1km of new cave was found in Steinbrückenhöhle,
|
||
and it is now 17.7km long. A fair amount of time was spent checking
|
||
out leads in the probable 'connection zone', but they were all ticked
|
||
off without finding a way into Tunnocks. There is no shortage of
|
||
other leads to keep us occupied for many more expeditions; many
|
||
heading off into blank space on the survey. However, the connection
|
||
had still not been found, and the campsite was derigged, so it was
|
||
down to the Tunnocks team to keep pushing.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=CENTER STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=CENTER STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2><U><B>Tunnockschaft</B></U></FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>After dropping the 80m
|
||
‘String Theory’ pitch and exploring leads last year, Neil Pacey
|
||
and Andy Chapman had eventually been stopped by a small pitch leading
|
||
upwards into black space and only approximately 20 metres away from
|
||
Steinbrückenhöhle. Plans were made, equipment purchased, and Neil,
|
||
Andy and some newly recruited team members were ready for a rematch.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>However, just getting to
|
||
the current limit proved difficult going. An excessively hot summer
|
||
had caused much of the snow-ramps in the entrance series to melt,
|
||
meaning even the tallest expedition members struggled to reach the
|
||
hanger placements. A period of re-rigging ensued, with extra hangers
|
||
placed within reach of the height challenged and also to avoid some
|
||
newly formed, precarious crevices.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>A team consisting of Andy,
|
||
Noel Snape and Rob Adams continued rigging, narrowly avoiding Noel
|
||
meeting an untimely end after a boulder fell onto a traverse line
|
||
over a large pot, leaving him spreadeagled on a very tight rope over
|
||
a large drop. The now decidedly shaky team carried on to the head of
|
||
String Theory but felt it wise to pass on rigging for that day.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Eventually, the rigging was
|
||
completed and the final survey station reached in the newly
|
||
christened Leaky chamber. Andy began aid climbing the small pitch,
|
||
eventually reaching the top. Neil followed and continued to the next
|
||
obstacle, another pitch leading upwards. Neil quickly free climbed
|
||
this and another small pitch afterwards, finishing at a ledge with a
|
||
small, muddy tube going leftwards and a 10m pitch continuing up.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>As all the static rope had
|
||
been used rigging the previous pitches, Neil and Andy thought they’d
|
||
better survey the small tube and head back home. However, the tube
|
||
increased from hands and knees crawling to walking until a large
|
||
window was reached. Dangling out, over the pitch head, we could see
|
||
down into a big chamber with a massive pitch heading down past this
|
||
which was promptly christened ‘The Beast‘. Two excited cavers
|
||
headed out, looking forward to the next pushing trip.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2><Somewhere in here we
|
||
should mention the occaision where Becka dropped a small pitch, found
|
||
a survey station and though the connection was made, but turned out
|
||
to be wrong. Adds a bit of tension to the <U>real</U> connection></FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>A larger team were back the
|
||
next day. Noel rigged down to the chamber and Neil, Rob and Andy
|
||
followed down to check out Above and Beyond chamber. Numerous leads
|
||
led off from the chamber but Noel seemed to think the climb up the
|
||
tottering pile of shale, in the left hand side of the chamber offered
|
||
most potential. Whilst Noel and Neil surveyed the chamber, Andy
|
||
climbed the precarious climb whilst Rob helped haul gear up and
|
||
offered much needed words of support.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>After rigging the climb,
|
||
Andy continued exploration, finding the onwards passage led to the
|
||
enormous pitch seen from the window above. A team consisting of
|
||
Neil, Noel, Emma Wilson and Gareth Phillips surveyed this and Noel
|
||
happened to notice a phreatic tube above the pitch head. Access was
|
||
gained via a bolt and hair-raising climb and the heavily draughting
|
||
tube was gained. This was pushed to a 20 metre pitch (Eh bah Gum)
|
||
which led into the bottom of a rift with numerous leads going off.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Holly, Noel, Wookey and
|
||
Becka Lawson headed back for a rematch the following day. Noel and
|
||
Wookey decided to go for glory and headed into the unknownm rigging a
|
||
traverse that didn't go, then a pitch found at the bottom of Eh Bah
|
||
Gum whilst Holly and Becka completed the job of surveying down Eh Bah
|
||
Gum. Having done the surveying the team found Noel and Wookey still
|
||
faffing with rigging so they went back to the unexiting job of
|
||
surveying a small rift at the bottom of the pitch. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>The team started down the
|
||
rift and soon discovered it popped out onto the ‘Beast’ pitch but
|
||
a wide ledge could be climbed onto. Continuing surveying a tube in
|
||
the wall, Becka noticed footprints on a mud bank. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
“<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Holly, have you climbed
|
||
on this?”</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
“<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>No. I think I might
|
||
recognise this though...”</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
“<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Where is it?”</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
“<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>I think it’s the Wares
|
||
in Steinbrücken!”</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Two happy cavers connected
|
||
to a survey station located on the opposite wall and hurried back to
|
||
tell the good news to the rigging party.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Having connected Tunnocks
|
||
to Steinbrücken producing a combined cave length of 27km and
|
||
completing one of the expedition objectives, other leads in Tunnocks
|
||
were also pushed. An upper level passage leading off from Starfish
|
||
junction provided over ……m of passage, ending extremely close to
|
||
the surface.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=CENTER STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2><U><B>Kaninchenhöhle</B></U></FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>In 2009 Andrew Atkinson had
|
||
spotted a hole 25m up in the ceiling of Repton II Chamber, and
|
||
reached it via a bolt climb and necky 20m traverse. This was the last
|
||
trip of expo so he and Wookey were only able to explore 100m of very
|
||
windy passage before going home. The small 2010 expo did not go back
|
||
to KH, so this top-class lead ('Irony of Time') remained for team
|
||
'vintage' in the form of Wookey and Anthony Day to head for, assisted
|
||
by Rob Adams on his last trip. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>The nearest entrance to the
|
||
bivi is 161g, which is a technical 1hr walk over and down the back of
|
||
the main ridge under which the system is developed. As with Tunnocks
|
||
snow levels were the lowest ever and a large snowfield that gets down
|
||
several rock steps had completely melted so a new route had to be
|
||
found and cairned. The entrance immediately has a fine 50m pitch,
|
||
then miles of traipsing until the massive trunk phreas of 'Triassic
|
||
Park' is reached, leading to a series of huge collapse chambers, then
|
||
back up dip to 'Strange Downfall/Upfall/Acrossfall'. This is a big
|
||
space passed by a p38 then a p25 back up again or a very airy
|
||
tyrolean.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>At the pushing front the
|
||
surveying was down easy walking passage with a very encouraging wind,
|
||
and after only 50m it broke out into big phreas going both North and
|
||
South and <U>still</U> windy. Following the wind northwards round a
|
||
corner it widened to 15m and huge grins broke out as they realised
|
||
what a top-class find they had sauntered into. Rob was amazed at his
|
||
good luck. 300M of trunk passage was explored before a pitch stopped
|
||
the fun for the day. The find was named 'Country for Old Men' after
|
||
the very easy going. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>The passage was heading
|
||
directly North towards Steinbrücken but whilst the gap had been
|
||
dramatically reduced from 420m to 250m that's still not the sort of
|
||
gap that gets closed in one expo. 3 further trips including some
|
||
international co-operation with the German Group ARGE who sent two
|
||
cavers along found another km (check) of passage and narrowed the gap
|
||
to 170m. The Strange Acrossfall Tyrolean was also rigged, providing
|
||
much entertainment as cavers unused to tyroleans starting at hanging
|
||
rebelays got themselves strung up.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>As the gap to Steinbrücken
|
||
shrank an attempt was made to rig Brian's Phat Shaft, in
|
||
Steinbrücken, the quickest way into the 'Catty Puns' area of the
|
||
cave which was the closest approach at the right level. This is a
|
||
100m shaft, starting 100m deep but not too far from 204e. A large
|
||
pile of gear and students was despatched, who made a valiant attempt
|
||
but the weather had been terrible so the shaft was very wet and
|
||
almost devoid of bolts, so after some hours of scary, damp and
|
||
miserable dangling, a retreat was called, and vows made not to
|
||
return. A more experienced caver was persuaded to take a look, which
|
||
got the pitch re-bolted down to -80m before running out of time and
|
||
derigging, so no progress from this end, but the way prepared for
|
||
2012. </FONT></FONT>
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>Back in KH, the Country for
|
||
Old Men trunk passage shrank to a small rifty pitch but with a
|
||
monstrous gale issuing from it. Despite this it was hard to find
|
||
willing potholers as the end of expo was approaching so people were
|
||
going home and there was a party/dinner with the Germans as
|
||
alternative entertainment. Wookey managed to dragoon 2 UBSS students
|
||
(Catherine Hulse and Adam Henry) into a trip. Rigging the pitch
|
||
(christened 'Mordor') was a deeply miserable experience as it was
|
||
absolutely freezing and confusing as to the way on, with wind
|
||
everywhere, and after a while it became clear the conditions were
|
||
about to produce a mutiny, so some '70s rigging' was employed to make
|
||
rapid progress. It dropped into more huge passage heading off again
|
||
so another long night of big grins ensued despite the cold, and two
|
||
more cavers were inducted into 'expedition fever', escaping at 4am to
|
||
an extraordinary view of mist in the valley below, illuminated by the
|
||
moonlight.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>The next trip (Olly Madge
|
||
and Emma Wilson) pushed on over the traverse to find another 150m of
|
||
passage ending at big shaft needing a proper bolt traverse, and
|
||
leaving the gap to Steinbrücken's 'Fat Cat' series at less than 30m.
|
||
In theory this connection could have been pushed further but drill
|
||
logistics, and derigging requirements menat it had to be left for
|
||
2012. Two final trips (Julian Todd, Andrew Atkinson, Cat Hulse)
|
||
looked the other way down one of the many A-leads, found a devious
|
||
way past a big hole and romped into almost 1km of large and varied
|
||
passage, following a massive gale, and ending at a pitch which is
|
||
certain to connect back to the northern end of YAPATE, and should
|
||
provide a much easier route to the far end, avoiding the comedy
|
||
tyrolean.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=CENTER STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2><B>Summary</B></FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<br />
|
||
</P>
|
||
<P LANG="zxx" CLASS="western" ALIGN=LEFT STYLE="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; text-decoration: none">
|
||
<FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><FONT SIZE=2>So as is often the case the
|
||
expedition ended on a high, with a monstrous list of leads for next
|
||
year, and what looks like an almost certain connection between the
|
||
62km Schwartzmooskogelhöhlensystem and the 27km of Steinbrücken +
|
||
Tunnockshacht.</FONT></FONT></P>
|
||
</BODY>
|
||
</HTML> |